At Thunderclap, we realize just how important it is for our clients to find and hire only the very best candidates. To do this, we use industry best practices for recruiting and executive search, while adding a number of our own unique methods to give our clients an advantage.

When seeking out top talent, we put our “executive search” hats on to make sure we are aware of all the passive candidates out there (i.e., those who aren’t actively looking for a job now but may be interested in working at your agency now or in the future).

So let us help build your tribe. We can find the person that looks good on paper, on a team, in front of a client and in front of your agency. Here are three beyond-the-ordinary metrics that help suggest why you can be confident our partnership will yield results:

• To date, 100% of our searches have been agency-side
• Over 70% of our business comes from repeat and referral business
• And more than 48% of our searches have been retainer-based

Our Approach
Looking for some perspective on how we go about finding your next leader? We took a look at the global executive search firms – the Korn Ferrys, Spencer Stuarts and Russell Reynolds of the world. And were surprised they didn’t go into too much detail about their approach. Seems like they take your perspective as a client, their own understanding of the space and then, inevitably mention tapping into their global databases.

But maybe they’re missing something: category, target and cultural insights.

Thunderclap applies brand planning perspective to finding your next leader
We know of no other recruiter or executive search firm that talks about it quite this way.

At Thunderclap, we immerse ourselves in you, our Client.  What you’re looking for in terms of function, skills, cultural fit (and more) with the new professional. Understanding your company’s goals and how this role fits into it is important, too. What we do here is really no different than other search firms.

But we’ll also explore the Candidate perspective, too. What are they looking for in their next new role? How does your agency, your market and your position compare to what they seek? Who are they as human beings, what are their personalities like and how does that impact our recruiting effort? These recruiting fundamentals are critical to increasing speed-to-hire, finding better candidates that meet the spec, higher offer acceptance rates, lower turnover and more.)

What’s the Category doing? Where’s the great talent working? Who makes up your competitive set and how is their talent pool different than yours? What are your competitors doing to attract talent that might shape our approach? Decades of billable agency experience and professional service marketing help inform this perspective.

From a Cultural perspective, what’s happening? Two years ago, for instance, DEI wasn’t a trade magazine topic. And now, it understandably shapes our industry. One could argue that cultural influences shape what’s going on across your company, the category and a candidate. Hence it’s position relative to the other Cs:

As an agency professional, you’ll recognize the above as basic 4Cs methodology and framework. This is the root of most brand and creative strategy. Is there a better approach to find agency talent? And who better to use the approach than a new business professional with decades of ad agency pitching experience?

Engagement Options
Thunderclap offers the following agency/recruiter working relationships, based on your needs:

Retainer
Many of our clients prefer working this way, because we take a partnership approach through the entire process, sharing information and ideas each step of the way. It helps ensure we’re finding and signing the best fitting candidate.

When we work together this way, you can expect thinking, leadership and help around questions that come up BEFORE the search is put into the market: the who, what, where, why and how of a given search using our 4Cs’s approach. You’ll also get our professional and objective opinion on any and all candidates for the job, regardless of who sourced them.  Request more information on the benefits of our retained searches.

Contingency
This is the go-to relationship for many of our clients, and our compensation and guarantee terms are easily within industry standards. The level of consulting and collaboration isn’t nearly as high as our retainer searches, but for many agencies, it makes the most sense. Like all of Thunderclap’s searches, we’ll pull together a presentation on the unique opportunity, and find candidates who are a natural fit (in terms of experience, personality, etc.). You’ll receive the professional and friendly service for which Thunderclap is known, from kick-off meeting through final placement. Request more information on the benefits of our contingency searches.

Contrainer / Contract
Less expensive than a traditional contingency or retainer relationship, we act as a contracted member of your team with a contrainer relationship, helping you fill a variety of positions. Unlike contingency searches, where you may feel that you’re being “sold” a candidate, this doesn’t happen with a contrainer, as we’re literally one of your team members, often sitting down the hall from you. So you get all the thinking and help seen in a retained search. In addition to working our own database and network, we fine-tune existing application channels and referral sources for an optimized talent pipeline. Ask us about how this might work for your recruiting challenges.